posted on Monday, January 07, 2008 7:06 AM
by
Jeremy RVARC
Being Bicycle Friendly
Jeff Sturgeon of The Roanoke Times has a
front page article on an upcoming League of American Bicyclist workshop that will be held tomorrow in Roanoke. Shane Sawyer, Bicyle and Pedestrian Planner with the Regional Commission, and I will both be attending, along with other local elected officials, planners, and area cycling advocates. The Workshop will go through the process of becoming a Bicycle Friendly Community, a designation offered by the League and attained by only 73 localities nation-wide. What makes a community bicycle friendly?
Bike-friendly communities are those that, in the opinion of a panel of evaluators, are serious about developing the benefits of biking for fun, fitness and transportation.
So what do we have that shows we're serious as a region? From the article:
The region would have several assets to trumpet, including progress paving the Roanoke River Greenway, where bikes are welcome, and the proposed launch of a free or low-cost shared bicycle program. The Blue Ridge Bicycle Club has 425 members.
If it seems a bit spare, it must be that space concerns did not allow Sturgeon to include:
And I'm sure there's much more. The Roanoke region has a good shot at getting the Bronze level of designation, it seems to me, and doing so could propel local governments into building additional bicycle infrastructure and driver education into the region.